Today, millions of fathers across Canada will be waking up to burnt bacon and pancake-batter-smeared children bearing another gift coffee mug and hand-drawn card promising help with mowing the lawn, washing the car or cleaning out the garage, none of which any of those dads wants to do today, or ever.

Meanwhile, millions of grandfathers will be waking up about two hours earlier, smug in the knowledge that, even though their backs hurt, the lawn is already mown, the car is already washed and the garage is too full of old Father’s Day mugs to be properly cleaned without hurting somebody’s feelings.

Yes, it’s Father’s Day! And if you feel bad because — darn it — you forgot dad’s special day, don’t. He ­probably forgot it too, and anyway, Father’s Day is one of the reasons why we have the expression “Least said, soonest mended.”

In Canada, Father’s Day is always celebrated on the third Sunday in June because eh, good enough, why not?

This turns out to be a common approach, by which I mean the date varies by country (New Zealand and ­Australia celebrate the first Sunday in September; Italy and Spain celebrate on March 19; Brazil on the second Sunday of August; Russia on Feb. 23, where the ­occasion is known as “Defender of the........

© Times Colonist